Four new names commenced their new lives at St Kilda on Monday morning, after being acquired with the Saints’ four picks at Friday night’s NAB AFL Draft.
Holding two top 10 picks for the first time since 2001, St Kilda selected highly rated Dandenong Stingrays midfielder Hunter Clark with pick No. 7 and Northern Knights captain Nick Coffield at No. 8.
The Saints then added All-Australian
After adding some class and speed around the ball, as well as one of the best key defenders in the draft pool, St Kilda List and Recruiting Manager Tony Elshaug
“You’re never quite sure how it’s going to unfold. But to end up with Hunter Clark and Nick Coffield at seven and eight, Oscar Clavarino at 35 and Ben Patton at 46, we couldn’t have been more pleased,” Elshaug told saints.com.au.
“We think we’ve got a good group that can really add a lot to our current list.”
Tony Elshaug’s dissects St Kilda’s four picks:
No. 7 Hunter Clark (Dandenong Stingrays) 186cm, 79kg – Midfielder
“He’s a damn good player, Hunter. He’s a very good midfielder, but he can go to half-back, he can play at half-forward; I suspect he’s going to spend a little bit of time on the wing as well. He kicks the ball well on
No. 8 Nick Coffield (Northern Knights) 190cm, 83kg – Half-back-Midfielder
“Nick’s a very good player as well. He played a lot across half-back but also went into the midfield as well and went forward a number of times and kicked goals – he showed a lot of versatility. Nick has good speed and is a good kick with a lot of flexibility in his game. He’s 190cm but he might even still be growing. I think in a lot of ways his potential is endless.”
No. 35 Oscar Clavarino (Dandenong Stingrays) 196cm, 85 kg – Key defender
“He is a key back and a very good intercept mark. Oscar is a good leader who was co-captain of Vic Country and an All-Australian key defender. We think he is made of the right stuff and as an 18-year-old key
No. 46 Ben Paton (Murray Bushrangers) 185cm, 77kg – Midfielder-defender
“Ben was another All-Australian. Last year he played in the midfield and other positions around the ground. This year he played more in defence, but we also saw him play on the wing at times as well as on the inside. He’s a good kick on either side of the body and he’s got good speed and a good jump. He’s a determined young man who had to overcome some obstacles last year when he was overlooked.”